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Grey County
|subdivision_type1 = Province |subdivision_name1 = |seat_type =County seat |seat =Owen Sound |parts_type =Subdivisions |parts_style = |parts = |p1 =City of Owen Sound |p2 = Town of The Blue Mountains |p3=Town of Hanover |p4=Municipality (Town) of Meaford |p5=Township of Chatsworth |p6=Township of Georgian Bluffs |p7=Municipality (township) of Grey Highlands |p8=Township of Southgate |p9=Township of West Grey |government_footnotes = |government_type =Upper Tier Municipal Government |leader_title =Warden |leader_name = |leader_title1 = |leader_name1 = |established_title = Established |established_date = 1852 |area_magnitude = |area_footnotes = |area_total_km2 = |area_land_km2 = 4513.21 |area_water_km2 = |area_water_percent = |elevation_footnotes = |elevation_m = |elevation_max_m = |elevation_min_m = |population_as_of = 2011 |population_footnotes = |population_note = |population_total = 92568 |population_density_km2 = 20.5 |timezone = EST |utc_offset = -5 |timezone_DST = EDT |utc_offset_DST = -4 |coor_type = |latd=44 |latm=20 |latNS=N |longd=80 |longm=40 |longEW=W |coordinates_display = inline,title |coordinates_region = CA-ON |postal_code_type = |postal_code = |area_code = |website = www.grey.ca |footnotes = }} Grey County is a county of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is in Owen Sound. It is located in the subregion of Southern Ontario named Southwestern Ontario. Grey County is also a part of the Georgian Triangle. History The first European settlement was in the vicinity of Collingwood or Meaford. Exploring parties arrived from York in 1825 by traveling from Holland Landing and down the Holland River into Lake Simcoe and Shanty Bay. From there they traveled by land to the Nottawasaga River into Georgian Bay and along the thickly wooded shore. In 1837 the village of Sydenham was surveyed by Charles Rankin, P.L.S. In 1856 it was incorporated as the Town of Owen Sound with an estimated population of 2,000. Grey County was created in 1852 and named in honour of the British Colonial Secretary's father, Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1830-1834.Marsh, Edith L. A History of the County of Grey. Owen Sound, Ont.: Fleming, 1931, p. 217. In 1861-1862 the first gravel roads were constructed into Owen Sound at a cost of $300,000. The four roads graveled were The Garafraxa Road running from Fergus to Owen Sound (now Highway 6); the Durham Road leading east and west from the village of Durham (now County Road 4); the Lake Shore Road from Collingwood to Owen Sound (now Highway 26) and the Toronto and Sydenham Road leading from Toronto to Owen Sound (now Highway 10). Prior to the road building it often took two days to walk up to Owen Sound.The Orangeville Banner, March 8, 1951. On January 1, 2001, Grey County underwent a major reorganization. The majority of towns, villages, and townships were amalgamated, reducing the number of municipalities from 26 to 9. Only Owen Sound and Hanover were unaffected.County of Grey - Municipal Amalgamations Local Municipalities * Chatsworth * Georgian Bluffs * Grey Highlands * Hanover * Meaford * Owen Sound * Southgate * The Blue Mountains * West Grey Demographics Grey County comprises a single Statistics Canada census division. See also * List of municipalities in Ontario * Census divisions of Ontario *List of townships in Ontario References External links * Grey County Official Site * Category:1852 establishments in Canada